Metroid Prime Hunters: The Gathering
by BLACKOUT14
Summary: Taking place after the race for the Ultimate Weapon, the six Bounty Hunters are back for revenge. They're going to achieve the power by any means necessary, and their first target is none other than Samus Aran.
1. Hunter Data: Trace

Bounty Hunter Data: Trace

Deep within the Kriken Empire, Overlord Vree was the only one who passed any judgment whatsoever. He rules his people by any means necessary, mostly fear and terror though.

One year ago, Vree had a contest to determine which of his mighty warriors would take part in the capturing of the ultimate power, AKA the Omega Cannon. Vree determined that Trace, a young Kriken Warrior, would suffice. After bestowing Trace with this honor, Trace set off, realizing the consequences he failed to retrieve the power.

Now, Trace has returned, but his failure is already public knowledge. Vree has passed an order to execute Trace at the crack of dawn. When Trace realized the situation he was in, he planned to take immediate action.

The Kriken people gave Trace sinister looks as he passed, these uncivilized people didn't care about his life, only his failure. Trace decided to run from his home on the Kriken Empire, and earn his honor back by defeating Samus, and bringing back the Omega Cannon.

"You're planning to do what?" a Kriken soldier asked.

"Simple," hissed Trace, "I leave this wretched place tonight, and with me will be any and all soldiers in the Kriken Army I can acquire."

As Trace said this, he aimed his Imperialist, a very powerful sniper given to only the most elite Krikens, at the soldier.

"I see," the soldier said in a hushed voice, "I will see what I can do sir."

Later that night, the soldier returned, with soldiers aplenty. There were at least 400 soldiers, all dangerously armed.

"You, soldier," Trace started towards the soldier he'd met earlier, "how did you get this many?"

"Simply put sir, they were eager to serve under a warrior of your supreme stature," he said sarcastically.

Trace's red eye glowed bright red, "Don't test my patience," he ordered, and fired the Imperialist through the soldier. All other Kriken Soldiers became quiet and paid their utmost attention to their new commander.

"Let this be a lesson to all of you! Those who anger me or test my patience in any way will end up like this dead fool here!" Trace screeched, kicking the dead soldier sideways.

The Kriken Warriors howled with pride, and with a single hand waving motion, the army marched into the Aircraft Hatch. There were approximately 50 ships lined up, each one capable of holding about 10 soldiers. Trace entered the most heavily armed one, as the rest of the soldiers entered the ones beside it. The ships ignited, and took off.

Meanwhile, Overlord Vree witnessed the dozens of ships take off from the planet, and he was furious. If Trace returned empty-handed again, he would execute him himself.

As the ships traveled through space, Trace thought about where the female bounty hunter, Samus Aran would be, "That foolish girl is probably with the Galactic Federation as we speak. Taking them all on at once would be suicide," he said to himself.

"What are your orders, sir?" a Kriken Elite asked in a hissing voice, as all Krikens did.

Trace thought for a while, then saw a nearby Space Pirate frigate, "Space Pirates…what pathetic creatures. Some of the weakest creatures ever spawned, and yet they've got the galaxy at their knees. We'll pay them a visit, and see what weapons we can stock up on before continuing!" Trace exclaimed, and within five minutes, the Kriken Elites had told the 49 other ships to land there as well.

As the ships landed, the Space Pirates remained inside, obviously awaiting their arrival.

Trace was the first Kriken Warrior out, and soon enough, all 400 were behind him. Krikens were relatively small creatures, so the landing patch outside the frigate was big enough to hold their ships, as well as the Krikens themselves.

"Captain," Trace called, "lead the first unit in through the left side, I'll bring another squadron through the right. We'll leave approximately 200 soldiers outside, in case of reinforcements. Space Pirates are easy enough to kill, so we shouldn't have many casualties," he ordered.

Captain Seeru nodded, "Yes, sir," he hissed, and made a waving motion, and 100 soldiers came running behind him.

As Trace started forward, about 100 soldiers followed him as well. As the Krikens marched forward, they made their way through the right entrance.

Trace looked around, "I can hear…fighting, already…" he said, "Captain Seeru must've been ambushed. COME SOLDIERS!" he screeched, and all of the Krikens ran into the Main Chamber of the frigate.

Sure enough, Captain Seeru, along with his soldiers were fighting off approximately 300 Space Pirate Warriors.

"Pirate Warriors…" Trace said in disgust, "soldiers of the Kriken Army, attack!" he ordered, and stood his ground as the 100 soldiers ran passed him.

Trace slowly made his way towards the back of the battle, where he saw Captain Seeru, arms crossed watching the battle.

"Can we win with these numbers, sir?" he asked.

Trace laughed a sinister and deep laugh, "Of course, Pirate Warriors are nothing more than amateur fighters Captain," Trace explained.

As the battle raged on, Trace and Seeru remained still, not wanting to somehow get themselves killed. Krikens were notoriously cautious when it came to fighting. The leaders never fought unless it was absolutely necessary.

All of a sudden, a green blast came down from above, and it wiped out about 20 Kriken Soldiers.

Trace and Seeru looked up, and a hover craft carrying about 50 Space Pirate Commandos was standing above them. The commandos leapt down and joined the brawl, and all that was left remaining was a figure cloaked in green armor with a brown ponytail coming out of his helmet.

"Pirate Commandos, what now sir?" Seeru panicked.

Trace scowled, "Weavel…" is all he said.

"Who is that?" Seeru asked.

"General Weavel is one of the highest ranked Space Pirate Leaders in their alliance. His power is even greater than that of the Pirate Commandos," Trace explained, and aimed his Imperialist at one of the Pirate Commandos. As he prepared to fire, he was blasted by Weavel who was still standing on the hover craft.

Trace was badly injured, as he lay on the ground with his gun arm crippled.

"You there, attend to Trace's wounds!" Seeru ordered of a Medical Kriken, one of the few rare Krikens that studied in medical needs and care.

"You must be General Weavel," Seeru said, preparing for battle.

Weavel laughed, "You Krikens are hilarious. Do you honestly think that your pitiful numbers can withstand a force of Space Pirate Commandos? Although Pirate Warriors are strong, Pirate Commandos are the most powerful units in the galaxy!" he bragged.

Seeru aimed his gun at Weavel, and charged it up, "You Space Pirates sure do talk a lot, let's see you back it up!" he roared, and fired a charged blast at Weavel.

Weavel, using his Space Jump, was able to leap about fifty feet in the air before landing on his feet behind Seeru. He unleashed his Battle Hammer, a bright yellow knife made out of raw energy and solar power, that came out about 1.5 feet from his forearm.

The Space Pirate General dashed forward and hacked Seeru in half, his innards flying everywhere.

Weavel turned around and aimed his Battle Hammer at Trace, who was just getting up from his medical treatment, "Are you ready, Trace?" the general asked.

Trace grunted, his arm was as good as new, and he aimed his Imperialist at Weavel, "Of course," he said, and fired forward.

Weavel ducked down and dodged the shot, and then charged forward and slashed downwards diagonally with his Battle Hammer.

Trace used his arm cannon as a shield, and blocked Weavel's Battle Hammer. He then pushed the Battle Hammer off of Weavel and fired three missiles out of his arm cannon at him.

Weavel dashed backwards, and fired a charged Energy Shot that blew up the first missile, and when the other two came out of the smoke, it caught him by surprise, and he was knocked backwards by the explosion.

Slowly, Weavel stumbled to his feet, and aimed his arm cannon at Trace, but before he knew it, Trace had fired a blast from the Imperialist at Weavel, and shattered his battle helmet.

The Battle Hammer vanished, and Weavel gasped for breath. Using his long, sharp arm, Trace stabbed Weavel all the way through the stomach, and left him dead on the ground.

Trace turned around and heard the Space Pirate General thud on the ground, he then watched as the Kriken Army overtook the last of the Space Pirate Commandos, and the Kriken Army was victorious.

After an hour of collecting weapons and supplies, the Kriken Army was soon prepared to march forward.

Trace walked next to a high-ranked Kriken Warrior, "What's the damage" he asked cautiously.

The warrior scowled, "We lost approximately 73 units in total."

Trace was satisfied with this number, it wasn't a bad price at all for killing one of the highest ranked Space Pirate Generals in the galaxy.

After a few hours of stocking the supplies in the ships, the Kriken Army boarded their small vessels and blasted off into space in order to continue their search of Samus Aran. And, as Trace looked out into the stars, his mind was scattered over a range of dozens of topics. This was the most important battle he had ever fought, and the worst part hadn't even started yet.

That night, one of the Kriken soldiers approached Trace hesitantly, "We've got an unusual high concentration of radiation on our scopes sir, we believe it may be Samus Aran."

Trace looked curiously at the soldier, "Radiation?" he asked.

The soldier nodded, "After careful studies, we've found that the radiation detected on our scopes matches that of the radiation released by Samus' Arm Cannon. If our data is correct, she's on a Desert Planet known as Oldera, and it's only approximately forty-two parsecs away."

Trace stood up straight and loaded his Imperialist, "Prepare the troops for battle!" he declared.

As the Kriken spacecrafts landed on the desert wasteland of a planet, they exited carefully. Trace was the first one out, and when he looked around, he noticed that the sand was soft enough to use to their advantage if need be. With a forward arm-swinging motion, the Krikens all leapt out of their ships and the Kriken Army marched forward. Over 300 soldiers remained.

That night, Trace and several other elite warriors plotted their attack plan. They had already spread the troops around where Samus' base was, and the female bounty hunter herself was in her gunship.

When Trace, gave the signal, the Kriken Army would storm down the hillside they were perched upon, and they would ambush Samus, and kill her. Trace would then take the Omega Cannon for himself, and his glory would be fulfilled. It was the most exciting moment of his life, and he was extremely anxious to give the order to attack. However, being the tactical genius that he was, he managed to wait until the exact right time.

Trace saw the bottom hatch on Samus' gunship open, and then watched as Samus walked out to a large hologram projector where she was probably trying to contact the Galactic Federation.

"Sir, if she gets a hold of the Galactic Federation, we'll have to wait some time before launching our ambush." Trace's elite advisor said.

Trace knew the time was right, he waved his arm in the air and fired the Imperialist straight up. The Kriken Army struck.

As the Kriken Army rushed down the hillside, all aiming their weapons at Samus, the female bounty hunter quickly realized the situation she was in. She used her mighty space jump to leap on the top of her gunship, where she then fired several small shots from her Arm Cannon which took out only several Kriken Warriors.

Trace aimed the Imperialist, ready to fire and kill her himself, when all of a sudden a small blue stream came from the right and hit Trace's arm, and knocked him off balance.

A blue being came forth, and aimed a weapon known as the Judicator at Trace, "I had a feeling you'd be behind this," he said calmly.

Trace's 5 elite warriors that had remained with him after the ambush all stood in front of their leader and aimed their weapons at this new challenger.

As Trace regained balance on his two feet, he gave his elite guards orders to stand down, "Noxus, you fool…you just threw your entire life away. Do you realize that?" he asked cockily.

Noxus charged his Judicator, a weapon that shot small ice crystal shards from it that could tear through any object. When charged to its maximum power, the Judicator had the ability to freeze anything. This was because as the Judicator was charged, the ice crystal chards become lager, and they lose their pointed edges and instead become round. However, they become so cold that they can freeze anything simply by making contact.

Trace responded by aiming his Imperialist at Noxus and in an arrogant tone asked, "Now what? We're at a stalemate. You can't possibly expect to defeat me!"

Noxus fired his Judicator, and Trace fired his Imperialist. The shot from the Imperialist tore right through the Judicator's blast, and Noxus leapt over the blast Trace sent at him.

While in midair, Noxus fired a small Judicator shot at Trace. However, Trace dodged this shot and the shard instead hit one of his elite warriors, instantly killing him. Then, to Trace's great surprise, the shot ricocheted off the dead warrior's head and hit Trace in the back, knocking him down.

The four remaining elite guards all fired charged beams from their weapons, and they all hit Noxus square in the chest and slammed him against the ground.

Trace got up slowly, and struggled to aim his Imperialist at Noxus, but then something incredible happened.

An explosion the size of a mountain occurred, and a large heat wave was sent out of the smoke. Trace didn't know what it was, but he thought perhaps Samus' ship had exploded somehow.

As the smoke cleared up enough to see through, Trace stood up and looked down, and saw at least 200 dead Krikens scattered around Samus' campground. There were about 50 others badly wounded, and the remaining ones began to back off from Samus, who was standing upon her gunship.

"What could've created an explosion like that?" one of Trace's elite warriors asked.

Trace knew immediately, "The Omega Cannon…she fired it…" he said in a hushed voice.

The Kriken leader then looked to his right, where he saw Noxus struggling to his feet. Trace aimed the Imperialist at his chest, and prepared to finish off his longtime rival.

Just as Trace was about to fire, he was hit in the head by a charged beam blast, and it had been fired by none other than Samus.

Trace fell backwards, groveling in pain, he had never felt this much pain before in his life. Not even when he had been hit by Weavel's blast.

The elite warriors all looked at Samus, who was staring up where they were, they then proceeded to fire a barrage of homing missiles at her. They thought they had a chance, but Samus was prepared for anything.

She used her Maximum Space Jump which allowed her to jump all the way from her gunship to the top of the hillside where the Kriken Elites were. She then fired a missile and blew one of them to bits.

The three remaining ones all aimed charged power beams at her, and as long as she didn't budge, they wouldn't fire.

However, zooming in from behind the back of Samus' helmet was a blast from the Judicator, which hit another Kriken Elite in the stomach and ripped right through his body.

Samus turned around and saw Noxus limp to he side.

At this time, the final two Kriken Elites fired their charged blasts at Samus, and the female bounty hunter was heavily damaged and knocked to her back.

Noxus charged the Judicator and aimed it directly at the Kriken Elites, but his arm was hit by a long red beam. It was Trace, he had not only managed to fire his Imperialist, but he had destroyed Noxus' Judicator.

As the Kriken Leader got to his feet, he felt his blood pressure and adrenaline grow as he prepared for one final blast.

Noxus leapt at Trace in an attempt to stop the evil being, but he was hit by the Kriken Elites and their charged energy beams before he could reach him, and was knocked out cold.

"Fool, do you honestly think you can compete with me?" he said cockily at Noxus, and then aimed the Imperialist at Samus' face.

Just then a huge green laser came down from nowhere and blasted the remaining two Kriken Elites into oblivion. Trace spun around and aimed his Imperialist upward, and saw at least ten Galactic Federation ships come in for a landing.

He saw one of the GF Troopers leaning out of the side-hatch of his ship, and he fired a small shot that knocked the Imperialist out of Trace's hand. He then looked in horror as the other GF ships proceeded to exterminate all of the Krikens that had not been killed by Samus' Omega Cannon.

Trace glared quickly down at Samus, "So you were on to us all along…you actually managed to contact the Galactic Federation for reinforcements, didn't you?" he said with fury as he saw his dreams of glory and pride shatter into a thousand pieces.

As one of the Galactic Federation ships sped forward, it opened fire at Trace, who stood in horror as they came speeding towards him, there was nothing he could do.

Trace attempted to jump out of the way, but the blast caught him easily enough and tore the Kriken Leader to shreds, ending his evil attempt to gain control of the ultimate weapon.


	2. Hunter Data: Sylux

Bounty Hunter Data: Sylux

There were plenty of outlaws in the galaxy, but none of them ranked higher on the Galactic Federation's list of Top Wanted Criminals than Sylux. A year and a half ago, a Power Suit prototype had been stolen from the Galactic Federation, as well as a weapon prototype and gunship prototype, all of which were now in Sylux's possession.

Half a year after Sylux stole the prototypes, he attempted to use his new power in order to gain control of the Omega Cannon, a weapon of such ferocity that it could destroy entire civilizations with a single shot. Sylux's intentions were clear: he was going to use the Omega Cannon in order to wipe out the Galactic Federation that he despised so much. However, his dreams were crushed when intergalactic Bounty Hunter Samus Aran beat him to the chase, and was able to escape with the ultimate weapon.

Now, for a year, Sylux has roamed the stars in order to find Samus, and take the Omega Cannon from her by force. He would then travel back to the Galactic Federation HQ, and wipe out every one of the wretched scum using his newly acquired weapon. However, he first had to find Samus before he could make his new dream into a reality.

As Sylux traveled from planet to planet, he left a path of destruction wherever he went. But as he continued his chase, he noticed that his ship's energy supply was starting to decrease. He decided that the best thing to do now was to land the ship on the closest ISR (Interstellar Starship Recharge) and get some more fuel.

The closest planet was Strii, a planet known for its abundant resource supply. Sylux decided to land the ship there.

When he exited the ship after landing it on an ISR platform, he saw three locals who came to greet him.

"Good evening, what will it be for you?" they asked in their funny little accents. The main species on this planet were short stubby creatures, with no physical abilities whatsoever. However, their intelligence was known about throughout the galaxy, which is why their home planet was one of the most populated in the galaxies.

Sylux remained silent, breathing heavily as he watched the three locals stare curiously back up at him, "Excuse me, but are you listening?" they asked, starting to lose their patience.

The bounty hunter took out his weapon from its holster. This was the weapon he had stolen from the Galactic Federation, known as the Shock Coil. When fired, it shot a stream of lighting bolts out of the tip that locked on to the nearest creature and would instantly fry them. All the while, Sylux would gain small increments of energy from those he destroyed using the Shock Coil. He had mastered it perfectly, and he aimed it right at the little creatures.

"What are you doing?" the locals panicked, and started backing away.

With one click of the trigger, the Shock Coil zapped all three of the creatures into dust, and he walked to the opposite end of the ISR and began recharging his ship. This process would take him about an hour to complete before his ship had enough energy to move on.

While this process was taking place, Sylux decided to entertain himself by abolishing every living creature he encountered, until eventually he made his way into the Main Control Room of the ISR, where he killed the two operators.

Sylux sat down in the Operating Chair in the Main Control Room, where he saw monitors showing what was taking place at each of the ISR platforms. With an accidental press of a button, the screens all changed and instead showed nearby planets with random information on each. With another random button press, the screens then showed a radioactive bioscope of each planet on the monitors, which showed the amounts of pure radioactive energy on each planet that could be detected. Sylux noticed that one of the planets had an incredibly higher radioactive reading than the others.

"Saaamuusss…." The monstrous bounty hunter hissed, and bolted upright from the chair and darted back outside.

When he got outside he used his Space Jump to go from the Main Control Room all the way over to the ISR where his gunship was located. He immediately ejected the recharge disk from his ship, and took off with his ship only at about half power. However, he did not care, all that was on this terrifying bounty hunter's mind was power, and he knew he was coming close.

As Sylux's gunship traveled at unimaginable speeds, he eventually reached a planet which his radar titled "Xolls". He landed his ship on the planet, which was an earthy planet with lots of hills and mountains. As he exited the ship, he realized he had landed on the peak of a mountaintop. As he looked down, he couldn't see passed the layer of clouds that was blocking his view.

Sylux holstered his Shock Coil, and pressed a button on the right wrist of his Power Suit. Immediately a small attachment came out the right side of his right wrist, and with the press of another button on the wrist, three missiles simultaneously fired out of the small attachment.

The missiles soared through the air and shot down through the clouds, and as he heard them explode, he decided that if there had been any dangerous life, it was probably okay to go down there now.

Using his Space Jump, Sylux jumped off the mountain peak and landed at the bottom of the summit. Looking around, he saw that what he had hit with his missiles was none other than a Galactic Federation base camp. He looked around with satisfaction as his hatred for this intergalactic police force swelled.

Sylux walked around for a few minutes before he eventually detected something with his helmet. It pointed out that there were life forms coming from the right, through a small mountain pass. Sylux quickly hid behind a small desk at the base camp that hadn't been destroyed by his missiles, and awaited as he saw a squadron of GF Troops marched out of the mountain pass.

The troops paused and looked around as they saw what had happened to their base camp, "Contact GF HQ immediately!" the leader ordered, pointing to another soldier.

"Right!" the soldier responded obediently, and rushed over to one of the GF Fighters and entered it.

"The rest of you men, arm yourselves and get into formation Gamma!" the Squadron Leader commanded, and the GF Troops huddled closely together and aimed their blasters out in front of them.

Sylux crept around the edge of the desk and saw the GF Troops swarming around the camps like angry War Wasps. He then jumped at least ten feet in the air with his Space Jump and landed on top of the GF Fighter. Not one of the GF Troops saw him jump or land.

Sylux then hopped behind the fighter and entered through the back, where he saw one of the GF Troops talking to a hologram that resembled another GF Troop.

"But you don't know what did it?" the hologram asked.

"That's a negative Bravo Leader, all we know is that we were hit hard. We were only gone a few hours," the troop responded.

Sylux snuck up behind the trooper and took out his Shock Coil, and aimed it at the back of the trooper.

"Soldier, behind you!" the hologram shouted and pointed at Sylux.

The GF Trooper quickly took out his blaster and aimed it at Sylux, but immediately Sylux pressed and held down the trigger, and fried the GF Trooper. He was still in tact, but he was smoking hot now, and he didn't pick up any signs of life from within the GF Armor.

"In there!" Sylux heard one of the other GF Troops shout, and he heard a rush of footsteps coming towards the fighter. Once again using his Space Jump, Sylux jumped and tore a hole through the roof of the fighter, landing once again on top.

"FIRE!" the Squadron Leader yelled as he spotted Sylux upon the ship.

The GF Squadron aimed their blasters and fired a round of shots at Sylux, who leapt backwards on top of a small ledge hanging out from the mountain.

"DON'T STOP NOW MEN, FIRE!!!" the Squadron Leader continued to yell.

Sylux fired a round of missiles that hit the squadron and left them all dead, except for the Squadron Leader who had managed to survive.

As he jumped back into the camp, Sylux came face-to-face with what he considered the scum of the universe. He then took out the Shock Coil and aimed it at the Squadron Leader.

"So it was you…" he said weakly, "you're the one who stole those prototypes!" he was heavily damaged, and barely alive.

Sylux glared down at the Squadron Leader and let loose. Five blue electric bolts came streaming out of the gun and stuck themselves onto the Squadron Leader and instantly killed him.

As the leader's body lay dead on the ground, as well as the dozens of other bodies scattered around, Sylux looked at them all with a certain satisfaction knowing that he had made the galaxy a better place.

Just then he heard the roar of engines, and looked up. At least twenty GF Fighters came soaring downwards and ejected ten GF Troops each. Sylux was surrounded.

Sylux immediately pressed the trigger on the Shock Coil, and slowly rotated as he zapped each one of the troops one-by-one. It wasn't enough, however, and he was forced to jump onto a higher cliff.

The fighters circled overhead, occasionally dropping additional troops when Sylux killed some on the battlefield. He then decided to fire every missile he had left, and wiped out about 150 of the 200 GF Troops on the ground.

Breathing heavily, Sylux kneeled down and dropped the Shock Coil at his side. More and more GF Troops continued to eject themselves out of the fighters, and Sylux had to force himself to get up and keep fighting. However, he had a plan on how to win.

Sylux pressed a button located on his right wrist, which brought up a small selection screen on the back of his hand, it read:

RESCUE

ATTACK

Sylux tapped his index finger on the bottom one, and then holstered his Shock Coil. This created a signal to his gunship, which within ten seconds was flying downwards, firing electromagnetic pulses at the GF Troops and killed nearly half of them with one shot.

As Sylux's gunship prepared for the final attack, a large nuclear-like bomb came out of the air and, going downwards, crashed into the top of Sylux's ship, blowing it to pieces.

Sylux looked into the air, and could see a hole in the clouds from where the bomb had traveled. At the end of the hole, he could make out the faint figure of Samus Aran.

"SAAAMUUSSS!" Sylux hissed through his helmet, and fired a charged power ball at the female bounty hunter.

He saw Samus jump in the air and dodge the blast, then land in the middle of the GF Base Camp.

One of the top ranked GF Troops, Commander Nivex, shook Samus' hand as she landed next to him, "A pleasure to receive your assistance Samus." He said gratefully.

Samus nodded, and aimed her Arm Cannon up where Sylux was perched. She charged, and fired, destroying the entire cliff where he was hiding.

Sylux then landed in front of Samus in the GF Base Camp, and the two prepared for battle.

"Commander," Samus said, "Evacuate your troops immediately, I'll take care of this one!" she ordered, and Nivex obeyed without hesitation.

Sylux and Samus stared each other down, Sylux holding his deadly Shock Coil, and Samus wielding her trademark Power Beam.

Sylux slammed the trigger of the Shock Coil, letting lose the five waves of electric bolts that homed in on Samus.

Samus used her Space Jump to leap in the air over Sylux's head, and fired the charged Power Beam at him, knocking him forward.

Sylux regained balance and fired his Shock Coil again, this time, however, it came in contact with Samus who was knocked into the mountain behind her.

Unlike the GF Troops, however, Samus did not die instantly, her Power Suit was made of much stronger material than there's, and she was able to force herself up against the Shock Coil's bolts and maintain balance long enough to fire a missile through the stream of bolts and hit Sylux square in the chest. This sent him flying backwards and he landed flat on his back. He had also dropped the Shock Coil during impact, and Samus fired a charged Power Beam blast at the weapon prototype, instantly destroying it.

Sylux got up and reloaded his missile tank, and opened fire. Samus ran sideways quickly to avoid these missiles, and occasionally fired her own missiles to counter Sylux's. Eventually, Samus simply jumped into the air and changed her Arm Cannon to the Omega Cannon at will, and fired down at the base camp where only Sylux stood.

The explosion was massive, and a huge wave of heat backfired at Samus as she let loose the most powerful weapon in the galaxy.

As she landed in the base camp, Samus could make out Sylux through a small gap in the smoke. He was on his hands and knees, his Power Suit completely malfunctioned, and his helmet cracked through the front.

After about five minutes, the smoke had completely cleared, and Sylux lay inches from death on the ground, a bright green eye peering out of the opening in the helmet.

As Samus used her Grapple Beam, an electric chain that was unbreakable, to bind Sylux so that he couldn't escape, she then handed him over to the Galactic Federation, where he would be imprisoned for life.

The Power Suit Sylux had stolen was returned and repaired, and the true identity of Sylux was revealed. However, the Galactic Federation kept the identity classified information, and not even Samus was told his true identity.

As Sylux sat alone in his cell, weaponless and with no hopes of escape, he stared out of his cell with only one thought in mind: revenge on the Galactic Federation and his new sworn enemy, Samus.


	3. Hunter Data: Weavel

Bounty Hunter Data: Weavel

One year ago, a Bounty Hunter known as Weavel left a squadron of Space Pirates in order to try and gain possession of the ultimate weapon known as the Omega Cannon. After returning empty-handed, however, Weavel was sure that he'd be banished from the clan and forced into exile. The final results, however, were much different than that.

Weavel left the Space Pirate clan as a hero, but returned as a legend. Stories of the dangers he faced against Samus Aran spread far and wide, and eventually reached the Space Pirates of which he used to have some authority over. And, after discussing it with the highest ranked Space Pirates in the galaxy, Weavel became a General of one of the largest Space Pirate battalions in history. His fame was unmatched, and his skills were top-notch. In his own mind, General Weavel was truly unstoppable.

Weavel, along with the thousands of Space Pirates he controlled beneath him, had been stationed on a long frigate orbiting around the X14 Quadrant of the galaxy, where they were preparing for a mission to retrieve a load of Phazon from a nearby planet and transfer it back to the Pirate Council, which was a group of ten Space Pirate Elites who had skills even beyond that of General Weavel. They had more weapons and armor than a Pirate Commando, and more skill than Weavel. They were truly the most dangerous beings in the galaxy.

"General Weavel, I have a small unit ready to move out on to planet Eledor, we believe that is where some of the locals in this quadrant are hiding pure Phazon." One of the Pirate Commandos told Weavel.

Weavel crossed his arms and looked out one of the enormous windows, "Of course, and if you find it, take it by any means necessary. We want to make sure that the Pirate Council is pleased, don't we?" he asked in a hollow voice.

"Yes sir," the commando said obediently, and stormed off.

As Weavel looked out the window still, he dreamed of becoming the head of the Pirate Council, at which time he would control every single Space Pirate alive. That would not be a task easily accomplished, but if anybody had the persistence and arrogance to make it to that rank, it was Weavel. He recalled a time when he was nothing more than a Pirate Soldier, a mere 3rd class warrior.

Then, after a battle with Samus on Brinstar, Weavel was nearly killed. Luckily for him the Space Pirates were able to rebuild him, but they unintentionally gave him extraordinary powers that far exceeded any normal Space Pirate. That's when Weavel first became a high-ranking officer.

It was at this time Weavel volunteered to retrieve the Omega Cannon for the Pirate Council, but when he returned empty-handed, he was sure the Pirate Council would see only another failure by him. The true outcome was quite the opposite, as they were astonished that he was able to go from nearly being killed by Samus in one fight, to matching her in strength in the next when no other Space Pirate has ever had that type of strength. This is when the Pirate Council made Weavel one of the highest ranked Generals in the galaxy, yet he was still not satisfied. He wanted ultimate control, and he was sure that if he could obtain the Omega Cannon, wiping out the Pirate Council and seizing control of the Space Pirate organization would be a simple task…not even the Pirate Council could stand up to a weapon of that magnitude.

Weavel regained consciousness of what was going on around him after his daydream had come to a close, and he saw that the Space Pirates were all buzzing with excitement.

"You there," Weavel barked, nodding his head towards a Pirate Soldier, "what's the commotion about?"

"General Weavel, the Pirate Council is at our doorstep! They're here for a private session with you sir!" he exclaimed, and ran to get in line with the rest of the Pirate Soldiers.

Weavel couldn't believe it…the Pirate Council…here? This wasn't a good time at all, he hadn't been able to get nearly the amount of Phazon that they wanted, and if he failed again he was sure he'd lose his rank and any hopes he had of seizing control of the Space Pirates.

After marching outside alone, Weavel saw the carrier that had landed the Pirate Council. They were quite intimidating, and they walked in a single file line along with main gate until they had entered the frigate itself.

As the Pirate Council walked by Weavel, they gave him absolutely no sign of recognition, and walked silently passed him until they were in the Main Chamber. At this time, they turned right and all faced forward.

Weavel walked in front of them, "How can I be of assistance, oh great ones?" he asked, kneeling down before the ten Space Pirate Elites.

The pirate on the far left spoke, "It has come to our attention that you are not alone in your quest to defeat Samus and gain control of the Omega Cannon." He said wisely.

Weavel looked upwards, "What do you mean?"

This time, the pirate three from the left spoke, "The Kriken youth named Trace has assembled an army and is on their way to Samus as we speak, they will pass your frigate shortly."

Now, the pirate on the far right spoke, "Krikens are known for being greedy, and they will most likely strike here before continuing onwards on their path of destruction. Assemble your men General Weavel, and take down the Kriken Army. If you fail, then all hope for you is gone, and if the Krikens don't finish you, then we will."

Weavel got to his feet, "I assure you that I will lead our men to victory. I will not dishonor the Space Pirate name," he promised, then added: "but, are you sure that the Krikens will attack?"

The pirate four from the right spoke, "Of course. Krikens in general are selfish and power-hungry, but Trace is exceptionally so. He will take out any opposition that could pose a threat to him for the sole purpose of not having competition. Be wise General, or else you WILL fall," he finished.

Weavel understood the consequences he would face if he failed to defeat Trace, and he knew it wouldn't be easy. But he had to, or else he would never gain the fame and recognition he so desired.

"With this," one of the members of the Pirate Council said, "we take our leave."

The ten pirates walked out of the Main Chamber in a single file line, and boarded their ship once again, and blasted off into the dark sky.

Weavel barged into the Control Room, "Captain, prepare the soldiers for battle!" he ordered of a Pirate Commando, and he obeyed without hesitation.

Within an hour, an army of about two thousand Space Pirates were lined up and ready to meet the Kriken Army head-on. Weavel stood on a floating platform along with 50 Pirate Commandos. It was a large platform, and the control box was operated by Weavel himself. He stared down at the army of Space Pirates, and within minutes after saw the Kriken space pods land on their docking bays.

"READY YOUR ARMS!" Weavel screeched loudly, as he saw the Krikens march forward. The Space Pirates all loaded their weapons and cocked their guns, ready for anything.

Then, from the right, a round of fire was shot and instantly killed a dozen Space Pirates. The Krikens were here, but there were only about a hundred.

"That's not all of them, they're spreading out," Weavel said cautiously.

The Space Pirates and Krikens clashed, and although the pirates had a vast amount of soldiers at their disposal, the Krikens were highly skilled and were easily picking off the weaker pirates.

Then, from the left, another unit of Krikens came out, this one was lead by Trace himself. Weavel grunted at his sight and watched as he fired his deadly Imperialist through several Space Pirates.

Weavel then watched as Trace sent his soldiers into battle, while he himself stood their and simply watched. As Weavel looked around and saw his troops falling fast, he decided to take action. He fired up the platform and slowly started moving towards Trace and his top warriors that surrounded him. It was a miracle that Trace hadn't spotted them yet.

Weavel then took out his most deadly weapon, the Battle Hammer. This large gun fired electric bombs in glowing green spheres that would heavily damage anything that it came in contact with. Weavel then fired the Battle Hammer, and it came in direct contact with Trace's gun arm and badly injured him.

"PIRATE COMMANDOS ATTACK!" Weavel ordered, and all fifty of the Pirate Commandos leapt off of the platform. They were far more powerful than normal Space Pirates, and would be a great asset to have on the battlefield.

Weavel then jumped off the platform and landed near Trace, where he was being protected by one of his elite guards.

"You must be General Weavel," the elite Kriken said cockily.

Laughing loudly, Weavel said, "You Krikens are hilarious. Do you honestly think that your pitiful numbers can withstand a force of Space Pirate Commandos? Although Space Pirate Warriors are strong, Pirate Commandos are the most powerful units in the galaxy!" he said braggingly.

The Kriken loaded and aimed his gun, preparing for battle, "You Space Pirates sure do talk a lot, let's see you back it up!" he said fiercely, and fired his gun at Weavel.

Weavel easily jumped over the blast and landed behind the Kriken elite. He then proceeded to unleash his Battle Sword, which was his personal favorite weapon. It was a sharp yellow knife made out of raw energy and solar power that came out about 1.5 feet from his forearm.

General Weavel dashed forward and hacked the Kriken in half, which caused his innards to fly and scatter everywhere. Weavel laughed out loud as he watched one of the most powerful Kriken warriors alive fall so easily.

He then turned around and aimed his Battle Sword at Trace, who was slowly getting up from his wound, "Are you ready Trace?" he asked smugly.

Trace remained silent, and with the words, "Of course," the Kriken Leader fired a blast from the Imperialist. Once again, Weavel dodged the shot. This time, however, he simply had to duck underneath it.

He then charged forward and slashed down hard with his Battle Hammer, which Trace attempted to block with his Imperialist as a shield. As Weavel pressed down harder, he could slowly hear the Imperialist start to crack, just a little more and Trace's best weapon would be destroyed.

Just then, Trace summoned up enough energy to shove Weavel off of him and send him backwards. The Pirate General then watched as Trace fired three missiles out of his arm cannon that came speeding towards him.

Weavel knew what he had to do, so he jumped backwards and fired a charged beam at the missiles, and destroyed the front one. But then, he watched in horror as the remaining to came in direct contact with his battle armor. He was sent flying backwards and slammed against the wall.

As Weavel stumbled to his feet, he looked around and watched as even the Pirate Commandos were getting slaughtered by the Kriken Army, and at that precise moment, Weavel's entire head seemed to split open. And it was only after that he realized that Trace had fired the Imperialist at his helmet, which completely shattered.

Barely alive after the missiles and Imperialist fire, Weavel gasped for breath and put his Battle Sword away. He gripped his throat and fell to his knees, cursing himself for letting down his guard.

Weavel watched as Trace slowly marched forward, he knew what was coming.

As Trace confronted Weavel, he used his right arm, which was long and pointed, to stab Weavel right through the heart. And as the Space Pirate General fell to the ground with his final breath, his only regret was that his dream of ultimate power would never come true.


	4. Hunter Data: Noxus

Bounty Hunter Data: Noxus

As he walked quietly down the deserted corridor, the Bounty Hunter known as Noxus quietly peeked around the corner, with his Judicator beam ready to fire at any given moment. After he saw that the hallway was clear, he backed up against the wall and silently reached the end, where he saw a fork in the corridors. He looked both ways, and saw a Royal Guard standing to the left. To the right, however, was a hallway with a large metal door at the end.

Noxus leapt out of his hiding spot and fired the Judicator, which hit the Royal Guard and froze him instantly. He then ran as fast as he could to the metal door, and, using his missile launcher, was able to blow it down to the ground. Luckily for him, however, there was nobody inside the Operating Room.

The Bounty Hunter looked inside and saw nothing but monitors, and one of them showed a Royal Guard talking to another man in a strange red robe. Noxus walked over to that monitor and turned up the volume, and he heard their conversation.

"So he's already infiltrated our defenses is what you're telling me?" the robed figure asked.

The Royal Guard answered immediately, "Not think sire, we know. This creature has already gotten passed sixteen Royal Guards, and we believe he may be into the Core Processor by now."

The robed man cursed in a foreign language, "Find him at once! Take a unit of Royal Guards with you and don't come back until his head is on my mantel! First we have Samus to deal with, and now this one? Do you have any information on him?" he asked, quickly changing his tone.

"We believe that he is of the Vhozon race, sire."

The robed creature thought for a moment, "Ah, an ice master you say? Interesting, then he will be freezing his victims with an ice weapon of some sort, although, I wouldn't expect this sort of behavior from a Vhozon…a Kriken perhaps, but not a Vhozon. See to this matter immediately Captain, and don't return without his head!" he finished, and stormed off.

Noxus quickly bolted out of the room and ran down several corridors he'd already been down. He knew what he had to get, but finding it was another problem altogether.

After running back outside into the Waste Grounds, Noxus saw a unit of Royal Guards coming his way. Each one armed with a Static Spear, Reflector Shield, and several Thermal Detonators which would be especially dangerous for Noxus. These Royal Guards were of the Gramora race, which were a race of scaly alien life forms. They wore shining silver body armor and tight helmets with a dark visor over them. When Noxus saw them approach, he loaded his Judicator and prepared for battle.

Although the Royal Guards hadn't seen Noxus yet, he was still at a great disadvantage. There were ten Royal Guards, and only one of him. So, quickly, he used his Space Jump to leap onto a floating platform above the Royal Guards in order to have a better shot at them. Unfortunately, however, one of the guards spotted him and they all started throwing Thermal Detonators on top of the platform.

Noxus quickly jumped off of the platform, and not a second too soon…for as soon as he jumped the platform exploded and Noxus was sent flying onto the ground.

The Royal Guards charged at Noxus with their Static Spears raised above their heads, the point facing the blue creature. In response, Noxus fired a round of missiles at the guards to try and slow at least some of them up.

When the Royal Guards saw the missiles coming, they raised their shields and avoided any damage they might've taken. They then proceeded with their attack. Noxus had no choice but to run.

As the Royal Guards chased him, Noxus ran and his behind a wall, but he was not well hidden. Noxus could here the guard's footsteps approaching. As the Royal Guards approached the wall, they stopped and clicked their spears, creating a static charge in the point of the spear. As Noxus heard one of them approach, he quickly jumped out of hiding and, using his long claw-like arm, sliced right through one of the guard's head and instantly killed him.

The remaining Royal Guards all threw their spears at Noxus, and six of the nine thrown hit Noxus in the chest and knocked him backwards. After the spears had entered Noxus' body, the static that the points held zapped Noxus from the inside and paralyzed him temporarily.

The Royal Guards then approached the Vhozon cautiously, not wanting to be tricked and killed as their comrade had been. Finally, when they saw that Noxus had indeed been knocked out, they moved in on their prey.

"Wait!" one of the Royal Guards ordered, "It would be easier to kill him if we just use our detonators and blow him to bits, wouldn't it? Why risk getting tricked into our own deaths, when we can just do this the easier, safer way?" he asked persuasively.

The other Royal Guards agreed, and all of them launched their detonators at Noxus and took off for cover. When they detonated, Noxus was sent soaring at least seventy feet into the air, and landed on a high perch on one of the control buildings.

The Royal Guards immediately took off in search of their kill, but what they didn't know that all they had waiting for them was an angry Vhozon.

On the building top, Noxus yanked the spears out of his chest and fumed. In his search for galactic morality, all he had gotten was hostility when he was expecting hospitality. All rationality in Noxus' being ceased to exist, and he prepared to kill the ones that he considered to be unworthy.

As the Royal Guards reached the roof where Noxus weakly stood his ground, they all pulled out more Thermal Detonators and clicked the launch button. They then threw their detonators in hopes of finishing the bounty hunter off.

Noxus leapt into the air a good fifty feet and landed behind the Royal Guards. He then charged his Judicator and quickly froze two guards at the same time. The other seven, while trying to avoid the explosion, picked up the Static Spears that Noxus had pulled out of his chest. Six of them got one, while one remained unarmed. Noxus saw this and fired a missile at the unarmed one, immediately obliterating him.

The six Royal Guards rushed forward at Noxus, who fired an uncharged Judicator blast. This one small ice shard launched out of the Judicator at incredible speeds and hit one of the guards in the visor of the helmet, instantly killing him. However, to the remaining guards' great dismay, the shot then ricocheted off of the visor and hit another one in the back of the head, killing him too.

The other Royal Guards turned around and one-by-one fell to their doom as the small ice shard bounced off of each and every one of them and then went on to the next one. With a single shot, Noxus had completely wiped out his foes. He then jumped off the building and continued his search for righteousness and truth.

After another hour of searching the facility, Noxus finally got where he needed to be: the Processor Core. This held the object that he longed to find. An object that would make him an idol in the eyes of his people.

Noxus entered the Processor Core, where he saw only the man he'd seen in the monitor earlier in the long red robe. He approached this creature and aimed his Judicator at him, prepared for anything.

The man smiled, "So you're the Vhozon who's been interfering with my plans for total galactic control, are you? Noxus, I presume? You're the top-ranked Vhozon Bounty Hunter in the galaxy, and I wasn't shocked when my spies told me you were in the facility."

"Don't kid with me Allivor, where are you keeping the Hailstone?" Noxus demanded fiercely. The Gramora Race had committed a terrible crime, and he was going to make sure they paid for it.

"You fool, do you honestly think it matters anymore? The Hailstone was exactly what the Gramorans needed in order to gain galactic dominance. We had the other essences, but your Hailstone was a precious piece we could not continue without, and there is no possibility that I am about to hand it over to you now!" Allivor laughed.

Noxus edged slightly forward, "I know that you aren't known for your fighting tactics Allivor, and I know that you'll fall easily enough to my Judicator." He said boldly.

Allivor smiled, "True, but it's my superior mind that pushes me forward!" he laughed, and snapped his fingers.

Instantly, ten holes in the ceiling opened up, and ten Royal Guards dropped out of them.

"You see Noxus, I have won yet again. Your pitiful Vhozon race is nothing compared to the power of the Gramorans! Royal Guards, kill him!" Allivor ordered.

Noxus had had enough, he was about to perform a technique that he had only used once against Samus in their previous battle for the Omega Cannon. It was called the Shadow Freeze, and, if preformed correctly, it could take all of the Gramorans out in one shot.

The Royal Guards pulled out their Static Spears, and turned them on, prepared to kill Noxus by any means.

Noxus charged his Judicator, which made the Royal Guards hesitant, "KILL HIM NOW!" Allivor roared impatiently.

Noxus aimed the Judicator at the floor while it was at full power, and then let loose. Immediately, the ice chunk that had been released crashed into the floor and made a huge indent in the ground. Afterwards, a layer of ice spread out from ice chunk in all directions, until it eventually reached the Royal Guards. When it came in contact with their feet, it instantly made its way up their bodies until their entire being was frozen solid.

Allivor paced backwards hesitantly, "This can't be, I can't be defeated! I am a tactical genius!" he cried, and he too was frozen.

Noxus stood proudly as he looked around the room. All the Gramorans were frozen, and within five minutes he had used his Power Beam to shatter them all to bits. The battle was over, but the search was not.

Noxus then entered the room in the very middle of the Processor Core, where he found a glowing blue sphere floating on a table in the middle of the room. He picked it up and examined it carefully, "This is it," he said to himself, "the Hailstone."

Planet Vho, a quiet and majestic planet on the outer rim of the galaxy, was home to the Vhozon Race. As Noxus landed his space pod on a small strip of land surrounded by water and snow, he carefully unwrapped the Hailstone he'd taken earlier, and held the precious device in the palm of his hand.

"Justice has been served," he said triumphantly, and slowly raised the hatch on the pod.

As he stepped out of the pod, he stood for a moment and took in the wonderful sights he beheld. Snow calmly dropped from the sky and landed gently upon the Hailstone, at which time it instantly melted away as if making way for another flake to fall upon. Noxus hadn't been to his home planet for years, and he considered himself lucky to be back after what he'd been through.

Noxus walked through the soft snow, and looked around. He saw no life whatsoever, and heard no noise. He continued to walk. Within several minutes, he made his way into a small cavern where he then preformed an ancient Vhozon ritual that opened the back of the cavern and made an entryway. Noxus went through.

It was very dark in the tunnel, yet Noxus wasted no time moving quickly through in order to get to the other end. When he got to the other side, his spirits were lifted higher than they'd ever been before.

Vhozon people of all ages and size were in this room at the end of the cave, which was bigger than an entire city. It was called the Underground City of Vho, and it was one of the only populated areas in the entire planet.

Noxus marched forward until he made his way to a large Vhozon with two even larger ones standing behind him. "What is your identification?" the one in the middle asked.

Without answering, Noxus lifted the Hailstone, and gently placed it in the palm of the other Vhozon's hand. As the Vhozon looked at it, his dark blue eyes glowed a bright sapphire, and Noxus was immediately recognized.

"How…?" the middle Vhozon stuttered.

Noxus stood patiently and silently.

The Vhozons all looked around until they'd spotted Noxus, and everybody gasped, "You're dead," the leader Vhozon said again.

Still, Noxus stood quietly.

Then, one of the larger Vhozons said, "You were killed…or so it was told. How are you still alive?"

"The answer to that," Noxus began, "is simple. I survived the race to the ultimate power, and have returned to face my failure. However, I have not come back empty-handed. Eons ago, a glorious treasure was said to have been stolen from the Vhozon race, and I have brought that treasure back. This will be the key to our race's success Elder," he finished.

The Elder stood in amazement, "Noxus, how did you find this? By what means did you retrieve it?" he asked cautiously, not wanting to offend the Bounty Hunter.

"Don't worry Elder, our people our safe, and justice has been brought to the galaxy. At least, as far as our people go, we are safe. However, I am not done yet, for Samus Aran still holds the key to ultimate destruction. As long as that weapon is in her possession, nobody is safe, not even with the protection the Hailstone offers us."

The Elder stood silently still.

Then, one of the larger Vhozons said, "Why leave? Our people are safe, and you have miraculously returned to us!"

Noxus became angry, and aimed his Judicator at the Vhozon, "Peace has been restored for us, but for how long? The Hailstone will offer you protection until I can defeat Samus in battle and retrieve the ultimate power that the galaxy's people whisper about. When I get that, the galaxy will truly be at a state of peace." He finished, lowering his weapon.

The Elder finally spoke, "Then go quickly Noxus, for if Samus is as dangerous as the stories tell, then we may not have even a day to spare. Stories of how she single-handedly defeats Space Pirate armies and monsters that are so terrifying that no other warrior would dare even attempt to attack them are everywhere, and if they're true, then I fear for your safety."

Noxus nodded, turned around, and took several steps forward. "I will return alive, with the ultimate weapon in my hands," he promised, and left the cavern where the Vhozons were gathered.

The blue Bounty Hunter ran through the snow, until eventually he reached his pod. He opened up the hatch and hopped in, and then quickly blasted off into the darkness of space.

Noxus studied his radars very carefully, and noticed that there were high concentrations of radiation coming from a planet called Mag, where ninety percent of the planet was covered in lava.

"If that's where Samus is," Noxus said to himself, "then I may have more difficulty than I originally thought."

There was a good reason for this statement as well. Noxus was a Vhozon, a creature of ice. Fire and lava were some of their only weaknesses, and since there was only mostly lava on the planet, he would have an extremely difficult time making his way around it, let alone defeating Samus.

Nonetheless, he changed course to Mag, where he would hopefully be able to finally restore peace to the galaxy.

Within two hours, Noxus had arrived at Mag, and slowly made his first steps out of his pod. He looked around and saw dozens of lava falls that were at least a hundred feet high. They poured into a stream of lava that had a very quick and powerful current. In front of him, a narrow stone pathway made its way to where the river ended. And, although Noxus was weak against the lava, he still thought it was a magnificent sight to behold.

He made his way forward, until he eventually reached the area where the river came to a halt and saw a ledge on the side of a cliff. There, he saw a lone figure standing upon it, and knew instantly that he'd found his target.

Noxus raised and charged the Judicator, and prepared to fire, when all of a sudden a huge molten fireball came speeding towards him.

Noxus was hit and instantly thrown backwards by the shot, and was badly wounded as well. He looked up and saw the figure leap off of the ledge and on to the round end of the pathway where he lay. It was only then that he realized that the figure he'd seen was not Samus at all.

The creature was made up mostly of rocks, or so it seemed, and had large orange crystals bulging out of his shoulders, back, and even his stomach. His eyes were narrow, and glowed a bright ruby red. Noxus instantly recognized the weapon the creature had as the Magmaul, the sworn enemy of the Vhozons. It was able to gather particles in the air, and form a rock solid ball within the blast cannon. It then used extreme heat waves to heat up the rock, and even go so far as to start to melt it. After it was fired, the rock would catch on fire because of the sudden jolt, and anything the Magmaul hit would be instantly incinerated.

Noxus stumbled to his feet, but couldn't raise his weapon. He then looked into the eyes of the creature that had hit him, "You've beaten me with a single shot. Go ahead, destroy me. I've failed at my mission." He said with dignity, knowing that if he didn't return to his home with the ultimate weapon in his possession, then he would be executed anyways because of the extreme penalties that Vhozons faced for failure.

The creature remained still, "You…hunter? Find…Samus?" he stuttered.

Noxus replied, "Samus? Yes, I was looking for Samus…but it's clear that I'm not going to be able to get passed you as long as you're holding that Magmaul. So, finish me off."

The creature looked confused, "You want…kill? Kill Samus?" he asked in a primitive voice.

Noxus didn't know why the creature wasn't finishing him off, "To be honest, I don't know. When I originally took this mission upon myself, I thought I was going to destroy Samus and gain possession of her ultimate weapon she carries. But then I wondered: how do I even stand a chance? When I tried to defeat Samus before she had the weapon, she beat me…now that she has it, how am I supposed to win?"

"Samus good…she not bad…" he said again.

Noxus managed to slowly raise his arm without the creature noticing, preparing to fire, but still wanting time to recover to make sure he could shoot the creature with complete accuracy.

"How do you know this?" Noxus demanded.

"She…she save me…"

"She saved you from what?"

"Pirates," is all the creature said, and immediately he knew that he was referring to Space Pirates.

"Samus saved you from Space Pirates?" Noxus asked. Then he thought for a moment, and asked, "What is your name?"

"Spire," he said.

Noxus instantly jumped backwards and aimed the Judicator at the creature's face, and fired forward. Spire was knocked on his back and roared with fury.

"You're one of the others!" Noxus shouted ferociously, "You're one of those hunters that were trying to take control of the ultimate weapon for your own personal use!"

Spire slowly got up, "No…I not bad!" he said angrily, yet honestly.

Noxus charged his Judicator and fired forward again, and froze Spire solid in ice, leaving only his head unfrozen.

"You make Spire angry!" he roared terrifyingly. Noxus hesitated and took several steps backwards.

Spire's body glowed a bright orange, and the ice was shattered. He then lifted his Magmaul and shot another fireball at Noxus.

Noxus shot a blast from the Judicator at the fireball, but the fireball melted his ice shard away and came forward, forcing Noxus to jump over it.

Spire leapt forward and slammed Noxus against the head with his mighty fist, sending Noxus skidding backwards several yards. The rock-like creature then raised his Magmaul and prepared to make the finishing blow, but Noxus was not about to give up.

Noxus quickly got to his feet and jumped in the air and landed behind Spire.

Spire turned around and fired a charged Magmaul shot, while Noxus retaliated with a charged Judicator shot. The ball of ice and the ball of fire collided, and caused a large popping noise and a flash of white light.

When the light dimmed, Noxus fired three shots from the Judicator at Spire, which knocked him down. He then switched his weapon to the Power Beam, and charged it until it reached maximum power.

Noxus fired forward, and hit Spire square in the chest, sending him flying into the pool of molten hot lava all around them.

For five minutes, Noxus stood still, and waited to see if the fight was truly over. When Spire didn't come back, he knew that victory was his.

"A good warm-up," he said coolly, and made his way back to his pod so that he could find Samus and see if he was worthy of possessing the ultimate power in the galaxy.

Several weeks passed before Noxus was able to get a reading on his scopes of an extremely high measure of radioactive activity coming from a nearby planet.

"That must be Samus," Noxus thought, "but why so much radioactive activity? That can't be just from here," he panicked. He suspected that Samus had used the ultimate weapon.

Noxus landed his pod on a planet called Oldera, a small desert planet where he expected to find Samus.

Immediately after impact, Noxus ejected himself from the pod, loaded his weapons, and sprinted off at full speed. What he saw horrified him.

Noxus looked down from a perch and saw hundreds of Krikens all storming down a canyon where a long figure stood upon a ship. Noxus immediately recognized the lone figure as Samus Aran.

The blue Bounty Hunter watched in horror as the Krikens made their way to the center of the canyon where Samus stood. Noxus knew that if the Krikens managed to gain control of the ultimate weapon, then he would never be able to secure it for himself.

Noxus looked around, and saw six Krikens standing at the ledge of the canyon, all of them staring down into the middle of the canyon. Then, one of the Krikens raised his arm, and Noxus knew that the Kriken was about to fire at Samus.

"Trace," he hissed, and leapt down from the perch and landed a few yards away from the six Krikens.

As Trace prepared to fire, Noxus immediately fired his Judicator and knocked Trace's hand away and knocked him off balance.

Noxus slowly marched forward, his Judicator ready to fire at any given moment. However, Trace's Elite Guards were protecting their leader, each with deadly weapons of their own.

Trace pushed them back and confronted Noxus himself, "Noxus, you fool…you just threw your entire life away. Do you realize that?" the Kriken youth asked egotistically.

Noxus had had a suspicion that the Krikens would be after the ultimate weapon as well, especially after seeing Spire on Mag. He wondered how many other Bounty Hunters were now trying to seize this ultimate weapon.

He charged his Judicator to full power, and fired at Trace, hoping to kill him quickly and plan his attack on the rest of the Krikens. Trace, however, had other plans.

The Kriken Leader retaliated with a shot from the Imperialist, a powerful sniper riffle that was given only to the most elite Kriken warriors. Trace's blast tore through Noxus' Judicator shot, and Noxus was forced to leap into the air above the blast.

While in midair, Noxus fired a shot from the Judicator again at Trace in a futile attempt to kill his greatest rival. For years, the Krikens and Vhozons had collided forces, which is why the Vhozon race's population was so limited. The Krikens had wiped out all but fourteen percent of the original population, and Noxus didn't know if he stood any chance against one of the strongest Krikens alive.

Trace dodged the bullet nimbly, and aimed his Imperialist upward at Noxus, who would be easy prey in the air.

The shot from the Judicator hit one of Trace's Elite Guards instead, and after killing him, bounced off his face and hit Trace in the back and knocked him down to Noxus' great fortune.

Just when Noxus thought he was in the clear to finish Trace off, he saw the four remaining Elite Guards of Trace's fire charged Power Beam shots that all hit Noxus in the chest and sent him flying backwards into the sandy ground. He was badly wounded from the blasts, and in addition, he still hadn't healed fully from the Magmaul shot that Spire had thrown at him. Noxus was very weak, and was furious at himself for being reduced to a victim of the Krikens.

As Noxus watched Trace get to his feet with the help of his Elite Guards, his heart sank as the Kriken Leader aimed the Imperialist at Noxus' head for one final blast.

Noxus closed his eyes and tried with all his might to get to his feet, but he was so weak that not a muscle in his body still responded. And just as Trace, prepared to fire, something happened that would save his life.

An explosion occurred in the canyon where the Krikens were invading Samus' camp. However, this was not just any explosion, this was one of the biggest explosions Noxus had ever witnessed. The smoke went miles in all directions, and Noxus couldn't see an inch in front of him.

Noxus didn't hear anything for several minutes, but when the smoke cleared up just barely enough so that he could see into the canyon, he saw Samus standing triumphantly with hundreds of Kriken bodies sprawled out all over the place, dead. There were, however, some survivors who retreated from Samus, and within seconds were out of sight.

"The ultimate power…the Omega Cannon…there's no other explanation. No weapon could create an explosion of that magnitude!" Noxus shouted weakly, coughing all the while.

Noxus forced himself to his knees, and looked over as Samus raised her Arm Cannon, was she preparing to finish him off? But, she was not facing Noxus, but slightly to the left of him. She let loose a powerful shot that tore through the smoke and, when it came in contact with its target, Noxus heard a Kriken scream. Was it Trace? He had to find out.

Using all the strength left in his body, Noxus stumbled to his feet and limped slightly forward, edging through the smoke until he'd reached an area where he could see through. He saw Trace, lying weakly on his back with the Elite Guards in a panic.

The Vhozon then turned and saw Samus leap from her spot in the canyon all the way to the area where the Krikens were standing. She was right in front of him.

The Elite Guards all raised their weapons and charged them, preparing to fire at Trace's command. However, Noxus knew that he had to take action.

Mustering up barely enough strength to lift his weapon, Noxus fired a blast from the Judicator, which hit one Elite Guard in the head, instantly killing him, and then bounced off and killed another one.

Noxus limped to Samus' side, where he breathed heavily, not knowing how much help he'd be to her. Then, something horrible happened.

The remaining two Elite Guards raised their weapons and fired at Samus and hit her in the helmet, causing her heavy damage and sending her flying backwards.

Noxus, now burning with an intense hatred for the Krikens, charged his Judicator and prepared to fire. However, a beam of red light tore through the air and hit Noxus' Judicator, immediately destroying it.

Noxus, caught off guard by the blast, fell to his back.

"Fool, do you honestly think you can compete with me?" Trace sneered at Noxus, then turning his attention the badly injured Samus.

Just when Noxus thought all hope was lost, he saw an incoming Galactic Federation ship that fired a huge green electro laser that blasted the last two Elite Guards into a pulp.

Then, another small blast came from the GF ship that knocked the Imperialist out of Trace's hand. Noxus couldn't believe his luck, he might actually live to take the Omega Cannon from Samus and deliver it back home.

As the GF ship sped forward, it fired two massive blasts that wiped Trace out completely, incinerating every cell in his body.

Noxus looked around and saw at least a dozen other GF ships wiping out all of the Krikens that had not been killed by Samus earlier. Soon enough, the ship that had taken Trace out landed right beside Noxus and Samus.

Several Galactic Federation troops came out of the ship and aided the Bounty Hunters to their feet. One of them asked, "Samus, are your systems operating normally? Is there anything you need?"

Samus rubbed her head weakly, and shook it, brushing the GF Troops off of her. She then looked to Noxus, who had also refused help from the Galactic Federation.

"Commander, board your ship. I'll be with you in a moment," Samus ordered, and the troops all did as they were told.

Noxus looked directly at Samus, unarmed and badly injured. He knew that he had no chance of defeating her now.

"Why are you here?" she demanded furiously, gripping her Arm Cannon.

Noxus told his story: "I was sent by my people to take the ultimate power…the Omega Cannon…they wanted it out of the possession of evildoers and wanted to keep it safe. They didn't want lawbreakers to possess a power that could wipe out entire civilizations in one shot, so they sent me to take it by force. The more I heard about you, however, the more I began to think that perhaps you weren't the monster that my people claimed you to be. However, the choice is yours. I am unarmed and have not enough energy left in my body to escape. You can kill me easily enough."

Samus lowered her weapon, "The Omega Cannon is the most powerful weapon ever created. Its powers are virtually limitless, and I can assure you that I have no intentions of using it for reasons other than to maintain peace in this galaxy."

Noxus couldn't help but believe her, and he was relieved to see her lower her weapons, "If I return empty-handed, I will be executed by the laws of my people." He said quietly.

Samus remained silent for a moment, then said, "I'm sorry there's not more I can do for you Noxus. However, I can't give you the Omega Cannon, only I have galactic authority to possess such a power."

Noxus clutched his stomach, "Of course…there's not much I can do is there? I'll simply have to go into exile. I'll find a way to survive, you must not worry about me. You're this galaxy's savior, and you alone hold the power to maintain peace. This has been made painfully clear to me in the past months as I've faced challenges such as yourself who have shown me how limited my powers really are," he finished.

Samus didn't say a word, and loaded onto the Galactic Federation ship. As Noxus watched it take off. Strangely enough, as he watched his key to survival take off, he couldn't help but feel he'd met a new ally. He somehow had created an everlasting bond between Samus and himself. A bond of trust that he knew he could rely on if he needed to.

For the first time in his life, Noxus was seeing clearly, and as he slowly moved onwards to his space pod, he could only imagine where destiny would take him next.


End file.
